Notre Dame guard Olivia Miles excited for comeback from injury, momentum of women’s basketball

Welcome to “On the Break” — During the WNBA’s Olympic break, Andscape will publish a weekly Q&A with some of the biggest names in women’s college basketball.

Notre Dame guard Olivia Miles is ready to remind people of who she is on the basketball court. 

It’s been a year and a half since audiences last saw Miles, one of college basketball’s most electrifying talents, suit up for the Fighting Irish. In Feb. 2023, in a road contest vs. Louisville, Miles sustained a season-ending knee injury while diving for a loose ball just as Notre Dame was on the heels of what projected to be a deep ACC and NCAA tournament run. It was a devastating interruption to the star-powered beginnings of Miles’ collegiate career – one in which she had solidified herself as one of the best in college basketball.

“I don’t think that I have to prove myself again, but definitely remind people and wake people up,” said Miles, whose injury kept her sidelined all of last season. “I think they really have no idea what’s coming.”

Miles has missed being on the floor with her teammates and has craved the feeling of satisfaction that comes with winning a close game or the disappointment that follows a hard-fought loss. 

She’s had to watch from the sidelines as the sport’s popularity and momentum has soared in the time since her injury.

Now just a few months away from her official return for a Notre Dame team that is expected to be a contender for a national championship, Miles can’t wait to contribute to that growth. 

“I’m excited for eyes to be on us, on our team and I’m excited to grow the game,” Miles said. “We’re in this era of so much momentum and it’s a great time to be a player. I’m excited to get on that wave.”

Miles spoke to Andscape about how she’s maximizing these final months leading up to her return to the court, how her recovery process allowed her to explore a new world outside of basketball and the process of building an unguardable backcourt with running mate Hannah Hidalgo.

This interview was originally conducted in June.

I first wanted to congratulate you on graduating with a degree in political science in May! I’m curious if you weren’t hooping, what do you think you’d be doing?

I think about that a lot, honestly, because basketball takes up so much of my time. Probably working with the youth in some way. I love children. We’re actually running a camp right now, our women’s basketball camp, and I have a team of nice and cute little kids that I love working with. I feel like that would definitely be one of my passions.

Any interest in a coaching career at some point?

Not quite. I don’t think I could be a coach because of how impatient I am. I feel like it was hard enough for me to sit out and be a coach this year – just with my injury. I kind of got a taste of that and I really just wanted to be out there on the floor and I don’t know how I couldn’t do that you know what I mean?

As you enter this last stage in your comeback process, what goals did you set for yourself this summer as you ramp up for your return?

I think I’m not trying to put too much pressure on myself. I feel like I already have enough pressure to kind of come back and prove myself again. I think my main goal this summer was definitely just to get my body right. Get that aerobic cardiovascular system going again just because I’ve been sitting out and not really used to being in game shape. It takes a toll on you. I guess my goal was to train as hard as I can and get my body right so I don’t have any questions when I’m out there on the court.

Are these months, when you’re in these final stages, more pressurized than earlier in your recovery now that your return is on the horizon? 

Looking at it that way, I would say so just because of the time limit it’s like 3-4 months now, I don’t have 12 months to recover. I see it that way but I also see it as it’s coming so soon I can’t wait. I don’t really feel it as pressure, per se, because I’m already thinking I’ve got to do X,Y, Z and I’m really trying to just feel OK the first game. Don’t try and blow people out the water and what not. 

Is that something you’ve had to repeatedly tell yourself – to be patient? You mentioned you’re a bit impatient by nature. Was it hard to not do things too fast or too quickly?

Absolutely. That’s the hardest thing. When you’re in this progression state in injury it’s like OK you have ‘til “X” date to do a jump or a run or what not. You always have to be patient. You can’t jump prematurely and then hurt yourself. That was always hard. My coaches and athletic trainers were always on me to sit down and relax. I always wanted to do a little more than I could naturally as someone who is just trying to get back out there. It helped me gain a new level of patience.You really have to wait or else your body won’t be able to support you and I kind of learned that through my recovery process. 

Anything else that comes to mind in terms of things you learned about yourself through this process? Any lessons you perhaps didn’t anticipate?

I think before my injury, I really thought that basketball and being an athlete was my entire life – my entire identity. You hear a lot of athletes talk about this, there’s more to yourself, to personhood, that I was able to kind of learn and teach myself and things that I didn’t really know about myself before I got hurt. I kind of was able to step away from this entity that defined me and was able to find new parts of my identity that I probably wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do before. 

Obviously we wish the injury never happened, but are you grateful for the positive that came out of this experience?

Absolutely. I think I ask myself that a lot. If you were to ask me a few months ago, I probably would have a different answer. As time has gone on, I’ve seen how much growth I’ve had. Obviously, the timing was bad and X, Y, Z, was bad, I could go on. I found that focusing on that wasn’t bringing me joy, bringing me happiness. Focusing on the positives out of this time, I kind of had to home in on myself, which has made it better for me in the long run.

With your free time this summer, what are you up to when you aren’t playing basketball?

I’ve always loved playing video games, I could say. That’s not really a brain-enriching activity. I guess being outside, learning to meet more people. Like I said when you’re an athlete, you’re kind of told everything around you is your world in the sports world. I hadn’t really gotten a chance to meet other classmates and do other extracurriculars and stuff. Volunteer at certain places. I guess getting outside, being more active and finding some other hobbies. 

What video game is in rotation right now?

Right now, I’m heavily playing NBA2K, but I’m also throwing in some Call of Duty. 

Has the Lego wave hit Notre Dame yet?

Yes! Actually I have a few sets sitting in my living room right now that my roommate and I have to complete. I just got into them. When I was younger, I loved Legos so much but I kind of forgot that nostalgia and brain-stimulating feeling when you’re connecting pieces. So I got into it again. I’m excited about that. 

There’s always a lot of chatter on social media surrounding the sport. Some of it good, and of course some of it not. I’m sure that’s trickled down to you and your team. Is there anything you’ve read or heard that’s been said about you or your team that you can’t wait to disprove? 

There’s a lot of things. I think some people don’t really think when they type something. It’s just an interesting thing to me. I like to keep some things tucked away, but I’ve kind of learned to not try and please people. Everybody is going to always have an opinion but one thing I am really excited to disprove is that Notre Dame, our team, won’t work just because we have so many great players on the court. I’m excited for everyone to kind of see us in unison on the court playing together and doing our thing.

It’s special today for a college team to be able to maintain a core in this new transfer portal world where players can leave to be a star somewhere else. How important will that core chemistry be for your team heading into the season? 

I think it’s just a level of trust, a level of loyalty. I think that’s something Notre Dame prides itself on. Yeah with this transfer stuff, it gets scary. At the end of the season, you’re wondering who is going where. With our team I feel like we never had those kinds of questions. People on the outside were talking a lot but our core group kind of knew where we were, what we wanted to do and where we were going. With the pieces we were having coming back, we were already talking about that a few weeks, months prior. People were really on the same page and it’s really lucky and it’s a really rare situation nowadays. Our team, we’re pretty locked in on each other and our goals. 

What’s different about the Olivia Miles bag compared to the last time we saw you?

I think it’s just a whole new level of confidence, a new perspective on the game. I’ve learned so much being so close to my coaches this last year. I’ve also learned my teammates in different ways, just being off the court and seeing how they may respond to different things that I may not have seen when I was playing with them. Then just learning how to connect with people more on the court. I think that’s essential for being a point guard and I can’t wait to connect with them more on the court this season. Then in terms of my own game, I’m just excited to feel more athletic, more strong, more bouncy. Contrary to what a lot of people may say after knee injuries, I feel a lot stronger. I’m excited to feel more within my body – core strength, leg strength and mind strength as well. I’m excited to put those all together.

Obviously playing into next season’s excitement is the backcourt of you and Hannah [Hidalgo]. How are you both building chemistry with each other on and off the court ahead of the season?

We haven’t really needed to focus on that. We’ve been playing on the court together for a few months now. Even during the season we were practicing together. We’ve kind of had those chemistry tests, I guess. This summer is really when I’ve been integrated back into the team fully. That’s kind of where we’re learning. It’s obviously a change, it’s going to be different, but I think that we’re both willing to sacrifice different parts of our game for the team and to win. We’re both really locked in on what we want to do so I’m just excited to keep building with her. We’re playing pickup a few times a week and we’re getting a feel for each other and we’re trying to get in the gym as much as possible. We’re both aware that when we work, it’s going to be incredible for not only us but for the team, the rest of the sport and for our goals in general. 

Who is a player (NBA, WNBA or college) whose game you can’t get enough of right now?

I loved watching Kyrie [Irving] play when the [Dallas Mavericks] were in the Finals. Just his way of making the game look so graceful. He is so effortless when he plays and that’s kind of how I want to play. I just love the way he, no matter what situation he is in, finds a way out and just the way he leads his team and carries himself. I really enjoy watching that. 

What’s your outlook for this next season? How good can Notre Dame be in 2024-25?

Obviously, the goal is a national championship. We always talk about and reiterate that it’s a process that is going to get us there. We’re that good, but in order to not let that pass us by we’re really focusing and homing in on our habits, the little things that we do every day. It’s showing in our workouts this summer. We look great. We look confident. There are going to be ups and downs, but this team is so talented that we’re going to have no choice but to fight it out together and to push through. I’m excited for what we do. Regardless of whatever anyone else says, we’re always locked into each other and we’re going to win for each other and win for the university.